Jason Hernandez (born August 26, 1983) is the Manager for Player Engagement with

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...

. He has played for the Puerto Rico national team playing as a defender. Hernandez played prep soccer at

Paramus Catholic High School Paramus Catholic High School is a co-educational Roman Catholic high school located in Paramus in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The school, founded in 1965, under Archbishop Thomas A. Boland, and Superintendent of Schools, Mon ...

College

Hernandez played

college soccer College soccer is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. It is very prominent in United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and as well as in South Africa and the Philippines. The United Kingd ...

Seton Hall University Seton Hall University (SHU) is a private Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan un ...

from 2001 to 2004, and captained the team in his final two seasons. He was also named Second Team ALL-BIG EAST in 2004.

Club career

MetroStars

Hernandez was selected by the MetroStars with the sixth pick in the first round of the

2005 MLS Supplemental Draft Following the signature of the first MLS players' union contract, the MLS Superdraft was limited to four rounds. As a result, the Supplemental Draft was re-incarnated to hold the additional rounds. The 2005 MLS Supplemental Draft, held on February 4 ...

and signed a

developmental contract In Major League Soccer, in addition to the senior roster, each team can carry a developmental roster of a certain number of young players whose contracts do not count against the salary cap. The allowable size of developmental rosters has varied t ...

with the team for the 2005 season. After not playing a minute in the club's first 29 league games, he made his debut against

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

on October 5, 2005. He started the last three games of the regular season, as well as both games in the playoffs.

Chivas USA

Hernandez was traded to

Chivas USA Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional soccer team based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California. The club played from 2005 to 2014 in Major League Soccer (MLS) and was a subsidiary of Mexican club C.D. Guada ...

in a trade that allowed the MetroStars to move up to the first selection of the 2006 MLS SuperDraft and select Marvell Wynne. In his initial campaign with Chivas, Hernandez went on to appear in 29 league matches, including 24 starts. During the 2007 season Hernandez saw his role reduced as he appeared in 21 league matches, starting only nine. He started three of the club's four playoff matches during his two-year stint at the Los Angeles-based club.

San Jose Earthquakes

Hernandez was picked up by the

San Jose Earthquakes The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional soccer team based in San Jose, California. The Earthquakes compete as a member club of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). Originally as the San Jose Clash, the franchise ...

in the

2007 MLS Expansion Draft The 2007 MLS Expansion Draft was held on November 21, 2007, and is a special draft for the Major League Soccer expansion team San Jose Earthquakes. They made 10 selections from a pool of players from current MLS clubs. Format * Only one player may ...

. He made his debut on April 3, 2008, starting against

LA Galaxy LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began pl ...

. Hernandez would play for the club through the

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

season, and would captain the team multiple times. His 160 games started and 13,859 minutes played placed him third all time in both categories for the club.

New York City

Hernandez was selected by

New York City FC New York City Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in New York City that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), the highest level of American soccer, as a member of the league's Eastern Conference. The club is co-owned ...

as the 6th pick in the 2014 MLS Expansion Draft. He would start in their first ever

MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

game, a 1–1 draw with

Orlando City SC Orlando City SC is an American professional soccer club in Orlando, Florida, that competes as a member of the Eastern Conference in Major League Soccer (MLS). Orlando City SC began play in 2015 as the 21st franchise in MLS, succeeding the USL ...

on March 8, 2015. After the signing of Italian legend

Andrea Pirlo Andrea Pirlo (; born 19 May 1979) is an Italian professional football coach and former player who is head coach of Süper Lig club Fatih Karagümrük. Considered one of the best deep-lying playmakers ever, Pirlo was renowned for his visio ...

in July 2015, Hernandez changed his number from 21 to 2 to honor his boyhood idol,

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

legendary shortstop

Derek Jeter Derek Sanderson Jeter ( ; born June 26, 1974) is an American former professional baseball shortstop, businessman, and baseball executive. As a player, Jeter spent his entire 20-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the New York Yankees ...

. He was not retained following the 2016 season.

Toronto FC

Hernandez was signed by

in March 2017. He made his Toronto FC debut and his first start of the season on May 6, 2017, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–0 win against the

Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders Football Club is an American professional men's soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete as a member of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The club was established on November 13, 2007, and began ...

. Hernandez was re-signed by Toronto FC on April 13, 2018,. He was released at the end of the 2018 season following the expiration of his contract. Hernandez announced his retirement from professional football on April 2, 2019, and that he would be joining Toronto's front office as Manager of Player Engagement.

International career

Hernandez was born in the United States to parents of Puerto Rican descent. In January 2009, he was called for a training camp with the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, but he did not appear in a match for the team. Eligible for

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

through his parents, he made his international debut with the team in March 2016 during a Caribbean Cup qualifier against

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

Career statistics

Honors

Club

San Jose Earthquakes

* Supporters' Shield:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

Toronto FC

MLS Cup The MLS Cup is the annual championship game of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the culmination of the MLS Cup Playoffs. The game is held in November and pits the winner of the Eastern Conference Final against the winner of the Western Conference ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

* Supporters' Shield:

* Eastern Conference Winners (Playoffs):

* Canadian Championship:

Trillium Cup The Trillium Cup is an annual rivalry between the Columbus Crew and Toronto FC. The Trillium Cup is named after the trillium, which is both the official flower of the Canadian province of Ontario, and the official wildflower of the U.S. state of ...

: 2017

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hernandez, Jason 1983 births Living people American sportspeople of Puerto Rican descent American soccer players Men's association football defenders Chivas USA players New York City FC players New York Red Bulls draft picks New York Red Bulls players Major League Soccer players Paramus Catholic High School alumni People from Englewood, New Jersey Puerto Rican footballers Puerto Rico men's international footballers San Jose Earthquakes players Seton Hall Pirates men's soccer players Soccer players from New Jersey Soccer players from New York (state) Sportspeople from Bergen County, New Jersey Toronto FC players Toronto FC II players USL Championship players